A delegation of the Council of Europe Youth Department has made a visit to Kyiv, Ukraine. The aim was to confirm solidarity with the Ukrainian youth community in the face of Russia's ongoing aggression against Ukraine, to participate in the Steering Committee meeting of the Council of Europe project "Youth for Democracy in Ukraine: Phase III" and to meet with key national stakeholders and partners, in particular the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine. At the invitation of the Ministry, the delegation also visited the "Cemetery" of destroyed cars and the sites of destruction of residential infrastructure during the 2022 occupation of Irpin, as well as the Plast Educational Centre in Bucha, which has had an important humanitarian role in working with young people following Russia's full-scale invasion on 24 February 2022.
The delegation also met members of the Verkhovna Rada, representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, youth consultative bodies, non-governmental organisations and youth centre representatives from different regions of Ukraine. The discussions touched on the role of young people in the democratic recovery of Ukraine, especially in the context of the Council of Europe Summit in Reykjavik and the Action plan for Ukraine 2023-2026 "Resilience, Recovery and Reconstruction".
The Project "Youth for Democracy in Ukraine: Phase III" supports the implementation of the Council of Europe's Youth Sector Strategy 2030 and reflects Ukraine's National Strategy of State Youth Policy 2030, and the State Targeted Social Programme "Youth of Ukraine" 2021-2025.
